1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to cable connectors, and more particularly to cable connector adapters for terminating to the conductors of a shielded electric cable while transitioning to a narrower rectangular connector from a wider round cable.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A myriad of electrical devices are connected to power and other electrical devices by cables terminating to detachable connectors, typical of which are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,577,919, 4,830,629, 5,041,011, 5,195,909, 5197,900, and 5,244,415. In addition to facilitating convenient and rapid attachment and detachment of cables, the connectors also function as grounds, shields, strain reducers, and space savers. However, despite the economical geometry of the generally rectangular connectors, in many instances the often unseen environment behind a device is a space consuming, dense and congested tangle of wires and cables. This is particularly evident in high performance aircraft, where an immense array of communication, navigation, flight control instruments, and computers are fed and interlinked by a staggeringly complex network of cables and wires.
In such environments, where both space and weight are at a premium, cable connectors are typically organized in tight, space-economizing rows and columns. However, the capacity to organize and save space with the connectors frequently surpasses the capacity to do the same with the cables, often simply because the round cables are wider than the generally rectangular connectors. With wider cables, the conventional transitional hardware requires that the rectangular connectors be spaced further apart to provide clearance for the cable. Connectors typically do not provide a means for transitioning down from wide cable to narrow connector while also segregating and directing cables away from the device interface so as to prevent physical impingement and minimize tangle and congestion.
Accordingly, what is needed is a device to transition narrow rectangular connectors from wider round cables in such a way as to direct, organize, separate, mechanically protect, and provide strain relief for the cables. To accomplish this the transition should be able to terminate multiple wire shields and should provide a virtually unlimited number of angle entry options. Further, such a device should be lightweight, economical to manufacture, easy to repair and replace, and easy to manipulate in the working environment.
Three kinds of transitions are generally employed to transition from round cables to rectangular connectors: molded transitions, mechanical transitions, and heat shrinkable, premolded boots. Molded transitions, by far the most common due to their simple manufacture, nonetheless have several drawbacks. Because they are permanent and fixed by their very nature, they do not allow repair or reworking of the connector. The angle of cable entry is predetermined and cannot be altered. Furthermore, there is only a small amount of space allocated to terminating wire shields, thus effectively limiting the number of wire shields that can practically be terminated to the connector. This is why rectangular connectors are eminently suited for flat ribbon cable but only smaller diameter round cables.
Mechanical transitions are formed by connecting several plastic and metal parts. They have some advantages over molded transitions: they can be repaired, and the entry angle for the cable can sometimes be altered, but then only by disassembling and reassembling the device, and the angle entry options remain quite limited. Additionally, they tend to relocate cable stress rather than providing strain relief, as do molded transitions.
Heat shrinkable, premolded boots are rarely employed due to their expense. They have all of the disadvantages of molded transitions, though they can be repaired by cutting off the boot and installing a new one.